Triple Play
by QueenKunieda
Summary: After rejecting the American's proposal, Arthur found out he was being cheated all along. Later then, he'd confronted Alfred about it and fate just had to make him fall for the guy his ex-boyfriend had cheated him over. To top it all, his best friend suddenly confessed to him when Arthur was still trying to soothe his broken heart. How is this play going to turn out? SpUkPru
1. Rejection

**A/N: **Yay! My first Hetalia fanfic. I suddenly began to love the rare pairings of SpUk (it became my OTP) and PrUk (I was so happy in the real history they were allies for a while. Lol.) so I wanted to spread the love of this pairings further by making a fic dedicated to it. I'm sorry to the UsUk fans out there but I don't really support them but I still respect your opinions! I'm fine seeing them as a couple but I just don't ship it. (Hope that makes sense.) Anyway, I'm someone who's easily to ship rare and underrated pairings more than the famous ones. I swear SpUk and PrUk doesn't receive much love. D: Anyway, this is a SpainxEnglandxPrussia (and a bit of America trying to get UK back) fic. I havent decide the ending yet because I'm planning to let the readers decide whether Arthur ends up with Antonio or Gilbert based from the progress of the story. So both pairings have equal romantic scenes. HAHA. But frankly speaking, my first plan was making Arthur end up with Gilbert but I thought of making it this way since it's much more fun. Okay, let's begin reading!

**Disclaimer: **If Hetalia was mine, I'll make SpxUkxPru canon. I don't care if it's a threesome or not.

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**Triple Play**

_1__st__ Play; Rejection_

BUZZ! BUZZ!

The British man startled a little after realizing his phone just vibrated in his pocket. He pulled it out and flipped it open to check the notification. _Oh, it's from him._ The blonde thought before heaving a sigh. He didn't bother to reply the message he'd received and shoved his mobile phone back into his pants pocket. He'd only briefly read the mail and decided to ignore the caveat stated in the content. He silently grumbled at how busybody and wary his friend was about the Briton's so called romantic love life. The Spaniard won't stop telling him he was going to regret and will end up whining back at him for currently being in a relationship with the loud American. He wasn't sure whether that friend of his was just jealous because he managed to get together with someone or he had too much free time to actually be occupied doing something more commendable. He believed it to be the latter because frankly speaking, he didn't really see the other guy exit from their rented apartment to find himself a job or anything. He mostly would just sit and laze around on the red sofa at the middle of the living room, watching some Spanish variety shows.

The Briton was walking down the street heading to a particular café where his date today was going to be held at. He was impatient to meet his date resulting him to almost bump on a citizen due to his fast pace walking. He decided to wear a simple brown coat matched with his favorite black neck tie and bronze pants. He considered his attire to be quite formal for a date but it was too late to head back and change anyway. Besides, it was a normal thing for a British gentleman to be seen wearing formal clothing like this and he took pride in it. After all, he has his image as a Briton that needed to be kept.

'Now where is the bloody café? I don't see any signboard saying- ah! There it is.' The blonde spotted a board with a _'Red Autumn' _written in large cursive fonts located in front of a fancy looking café. 'This must be it.' When he was about to make his entrance, his cell phone throbbed again and it almost drove him near the edge of how annoying it was to be disturbed in an important occasion. He quickly scrutinized the second message he'd got from the Spaniard. _Bloody hell! How persistent are you? _He internally screamed in his head at how irritating his friend was presently behaving. His slender finger tapped the mini buttons hastily typing down his reply to his pal's text.

'_What the bloody hell is your problem? He isn't going to ruin my life!'_

The blonde man slammed his flip phone shut before receiving an instant reply. He groaned slightly before looking at his friend's reply and fathomed at why the bastard was being exceptionally worried all of the sudden.

'_Don't do it, Artie! You're going to get crushed! He's cheating on you, I tell you! C-H-E-A-T-I-N-G!'_

'_For God's sake, stop calling me that and I am educated enough to know how the word cheating spells. Also, I am not going to get crushed. Do you even have any proof?'_

'_Please, Artie! As your best friend, I don't want to see you being betrayed in the worst way possible. Trust me! That boyfriend of yours has already seeking someone else and oh you don't want to know who it is. Your fragile heart can't take the impact it will cause.'_

Arthur merely rolled his emerald eyes at how dramatic the brunette was being at the moment. Cheating? Please. He knew Alfred better than anyone else to judge whether his boyfriend was two timing him or not. Antonio worries over small and non-existing things too much. Not to mention he had his own problems needed to be taken care of rather than wasting his time prying on Arthur's love story.

'_Please. I've been through more devastating events than you and I know when someone is disloyal or not.'_

'_Why won't you listen to me, Arthur? I'm telling you this because I don't want you to experience something you don't deserve, you know…'_

Guilt somehow succeeded on finding a perfect spot in his heart at how hurt the brunette sounded. He understood the fact that he was just worried about him but he finds the Spaniard fret over small matters which was not related to him often. Especially if it has to do with Arthur's privacy. He just won't find an end to his rant about how Arthur was going to repent for making a terrible decision later on. He swore that Antonio was just being exaggerating at times.

'_Listen, I trust you okay? It's just that you don't have to worry so much about me getting deceived and all. I can handle any breakdowns I might have if what you'd told me is going to be true. So stop acting like my mother. I'll be fine.'_

The Briton stuffed his phone back inside his pocket before entering and waved at Alfred who was already seated at one of the round table near the counter. The interior design of the café somehow perked Arthur's interest as it was decorated with old style adornments that really brought out the vintage atmosphere. Without further ado, he took his seat across the American who was currently giving a lady killer smile that could knock out any maiden who glance at it. A tint of red crawled on Arthur's face at how handsome Alfred was today. The American wore a plain white T-shirt with a navy colored denim jacket that was well paired with his denim jeans. Arthur grimaced a little at how worked up he was this morning to even dress formally while the other was being natural yet attractive at the same time in his choice of fashion.

'You're quite late. Something happened on the way?' Alfred asked after a few seconds of silence.

'Oh, it's nothing. Antonio kept on bothering that's all. I kind of lost my direction on the way too so sorry for taking your time.' Arthur swiftly answered as he called out for a waiter to take their orders.

'Antonio? Oh, you meant that Spanish dude you're staying with?'

'Yes. He was rather noisy this morning for someone who usually wakes up at noon'

Alfred frowned a little before informing the just arrived waiter what he was going to have. Arthur ordered his classic favorite which was fish and chips and a glass of mineral water along with it while the other asked for a Big Bite Burger and a glass of coke which happened to be his usual taking whenever he had his meal here. The waiter jotted down their menus before returning to the kitchen. Once again, silence fell upon them. Maybe it was the text that Antonio had sent to Arthur about Alfred cheating on him made him feel uncomfortable around the lad now. _How if it was true? _Arthur shook his head at the doubt he had for the American's loyalty. He strongly trusted the fact Alfred would never leave him in such dejection state. Hey, they say relationships will never turn out well if you don't trust each other right?

'So, what have you been doing lately?' Alfred tried to break the tense mood that was building around them at the time. 'I'm quite busy back at the company. Being a CEO is a tough job.' He ruffled through his dark blonde hair while averting his gaze towards the window.

'Yeah, you told me that before. I'm up to the usual. Sipping tea, reading newspaper, strolling down the town's square, yelling at Antonio for being clumsy and untidy. Yup, the usual.' Arthur shrugged at how bland his daily routine was.

'You're not planning to find a job? You can't always depend on your parent's income being sent to you all the time, you know?'

'You made it sound like as if all of their money goes to me.' The Briton arched an eyebrow at how bold the other's comment was. It wasn't like his parents gave _all_ of their money to him. He only received like a quarter of it so he could support his independent life. 'When the right time comes, I'll start gaining my own money. I just don't feel like it now…'

'I'm telling you this for your own good.' His voice was terribly gentle when he'd said that. Arthur had always loved that tender tone of Alfred's voice whenever he gets worried over something. It was a rare occurrence since majority of the time he would speak as loud a roaring tiger. Let's not forget he talks as fast as a jet's speed. It was a hard time for Arthur to perceive properly whatever he'd heard from Alfred especially if the story was very enthusiastic to the point that the other wouldn't even rest to take a breath. It was not like as if Arthur minded it. In fact, he found it to be secretly adorable on how glimmering Alfred's eyes will be whenever he was all excited to tell something.

'Yeah, I know. Thanks for your concern.' Arthur blushed faintly as he appreciated Alfred's deep concern for him. Before they knew it, their food had already arrived and without wasting anymore minutes, they began digging in. Along the way, they chatted happily about all sorts of things which mainly consist about topics such as their everyday life, Alfred's complains about his work, their plans for the next weekend and much more. Even though Arthur won't admit it, he wished that time would move slower than usual since he wanted to use up all the time he has in the world with his perfect boyfriend. Then the warnings Antonio had mentioned came haunting back. Arthur simply brushed those anxieties away and chose to be indulged in the euphoria right in front of him now. There was no way Alfred was going to betray him.

After what it felt like forever, they had finished their meal and continued with their small enjoying talks. Arthur realized Alfred's pair of cobalt orbs never did left his emerald ones throughout their conversation. The blonde could feel butterflies flipping their fragile wings in his stomach along the way. Out of the blue, the American halted his story and rummaged his jacket's pocket hurriedly. Arthur blinked a few times curious at what was the other looking for.

'You know Arthur, I think we have been in a relationship long enough to begin taking a step to a new level.' Alfred finally spoke as he clasped his hand around the thing he just found in his pocket and Arthur couldn't detect what it was. 'I'm really blessed to have met you and I wish our relationship would last forever.'

Suddenly, Arthur felt really uneasy about the whole situation and the abrupt cheesy sentimental lines Alfred began to throw on his face wasn't making things any better. Arthur swore a sweat trailed at the back of his a second ago. Alfred continued to tell him those romantic cliché dialogues you could hear from any love movies but Arthur was too nervous to actually register correctly the sentences he had said.

That was when everything began to conclude. Arthur was too awestruck to confirm whether what he was hearing and seeing was true or just his made up fantasies. It was too good and too…_rushed _to be true. It all felt so sudden and Arthur was assured he wasn't ready to accept these things. It has only been five months since they started going steady and to the Briton, it was a short period of time. Things like this usually would be accomplished after a couple had been together for approximately more than a year. No. This was all too briskly even for him. It wasn't the exact time yet.

'_Would you marry me_?' Alfred was already on his one knee while holding out an opened black box revealing an exquisite diamond ring embedded in it. Thank God there weren't many customers in that café because this was far too embarrassing for Arthur. He could hear faint whispers among the waiters and waitresses as they witnessed the decisive moment.

'I...Um, I…' The abashed Briton stuttered on his own words because honestly, he was drop dead speechless about the entire thing. Out of all the list of things he's guessed Alfred might do during their moment together, a marriage proposal was the last option. Or you could consider it never existed in the list from the beginning. Don't get it all wrong, Arthur loved Alfred with all of his heart and was touched that Alfred would go all the way to buy a Swarovski ring just for this instant but it was just that Arthur felt like they were still too early for this. There are still things about Alfred that the Briton has yet to know and a proposal was much of a huge topic for a still developing relationship like them.

'Well, what do you say?' Alfred's eyes were shining with impatience and confidence that Arthur was going to accept his one in a life time offer and a reckless answer could lead to regret and even prolong sorrow. 'You know I mean it, right Arthur?'

'I…I don't know what to respond.' Arthur rubbed the back of his neck and tried not to stare directly into Alfred's anticipating bright eyes. Arthur paid his attention elsewhere and suddenly finding interest towards the grey tile. 'I am happy and all- '

'Then you'll accept!?' Alfred interrupted before Arthur could make clear of his sentence. Alfred was already standing up in an ecstatic mood by this point and Arthur doubted the other was going to listen to whatever explanation Arthur wanted to give. Alfred took the shorter male's left hand and slowly began to insert his finger into the expensive ring. During this time, Antonio's forewarning decided to make its debut in Arthur's current confused mind. It won't stop resounding in his head telling him to escape from this situation before it was too late. Arthur desperately yearned to reject the proposal but he didn't want to humiliate Alfred's grand act in front of these people. Alfred didn't deserve such things. Arthur could only close his eyes and hoped for the worst.

Arthur opened his eyes wide when he noticed his finger didn't completely go through the ring. The beautiful ring only managed to go half way then it couldn't move on any further. Alfred tried to budge the ring further but to no avail.

'Weird. No way it couldn't fit!' Alfred scowled under his breath as he pulled out the ring and scanned it carefully. Deep down inside, Arthur was extremely relieved it didn't work out. He believed he would regret everything if it had went smoothly. 'Arthur, let's try again-'

'Um, Alfred, I don't think we need to do this for the second time.' Arthur gathered enough courage to state up his opinion. He was prepared for all the arguing bounded to happen soon.

'Huh? But why!? I think I just didn't insert the ring properly and if we redo, it would definitely-'

'No. It's fine Alfred. I'm sorry but I couldn't accept your proposal.'Arthur bowed down instantly after he rejected Alfred's proposal. Like he'd said, it was still too early. Silence conquered the situation and only brief whispers could be heard among the present customers and workers. The blonde man knew it was very mortifying for Alfred to be declined amidst all of these people but Arthur couldn't just let everything go Alfred's way. What was the point of marriage if one of them felt uncomfortable about the entire thing? Marriage meant both people who were in love with each other being together eternally after they'd felt like it was already the appropriate time and sadly, Arthur didn't feel that way. He found himself to still have a long way to go before pledging an allegiance towards someone.

'But why…?' Alfred's gawked at Arthur and it was obvious he was agonized by the turn out of the event. The pool of tears in his eyes started to stream down his cheeks. Arthur felt the sense of guilt knocking at the back of his head hard after seeing such distressed sight. He didn't wish for this.

'Listen, Alfred. I'm sorry okay? I just don't think this is the right time. I mean, it has only been five months…' Arthur tried to soothe Alfred's upset heart but he knew that it was a fruitless attempt. Broken hearts took forever to heal properly especially if the scar was caused by no other than love itself. Alfred remained silent before he began to narrow his eyes towards Arthur with fury and frustration dwelling in such gorgeous pair of azure orbs. He took out his wallet and pulled out a few cash notes before slamming it onto the table.

'I thought you felt the same way!' Alfred retorted loudly as he shoved the box inside his pocket and exited the café without second thoughts. Arthur comprehended that Alfred was devastated by what Arthur had said and for sure they wouldn't be seeing each other for some times now. Arthur decided he shouldn't waste his time any further and took the American's money and kept it inside his pocket carefully. Then later he paid for the meal using his cash and thought of returning Alfred's money after the storm he just caused calms down.

The moment Arthur stepped out of the café, he saw a familiar black Volkswagen parked near one of the shops by the street. The blonde shuffled towards the car and the driver's seat window rolled down slowly. Arthur was greeted by a goofy smile he could recognize anywhere and he knew who it was.

'Need a ride? Since your date doesn't seem to end well, I guess.' Antonio bluntly commented. 'The look on your face says it all.'

'Shut up, you bloody wanker.' Arthur entered the car and fastened his seat belt while an annoyed yet pensive expression displayed on his handsome features. 'Take me back home.'

'Before that, let me take this chance to say…I TOLD YOU SO!' The Spaniard exclaimed before changing the vehicle's gear and drove the car down the lane. 'You are going to tell me everything later.'

'Shut it. He didn't cheat, you bloody git. In fact, I was the cause of this horrible date.'

'Wait, what? So you're trying to say the one who cheated was you all along?' Antonio looked surprised after hearing what Arthur had said but didn't avert his gaze from the busy road. "Whoa, whoa, Artie. I never would have guessed.'

'I didn't cheat, you bastard! I rejected his proposal!'

Abruptly, Antonio quickly took a different turn from their usual route back home and stopped at an empty parking slot he spotted nearby the streets. Arthur raised his bushy eyebrows in bewilderment and turned to look at the driver who was currently glaring deeply into Arthur's lush green eyes.

'Seriously, Arthur? He proposed you?' Arthur knew that once the Spaniard called out by his exact name and not some sort of weird nicknames meant he was being utterly serious.

'Yeah. I turned it down, by the way.'

'What an asshole! The nerve of him to propose to you when he's already with someone else!' Antonio threw his hands in the air and rolled his olive colored eyes in irritation. 'Thank you for rejecting it, Arthur.'

'I don't think he cheated. He looked serious when he kneeled just now.'

'Artie, Artie. Humans are good at acting. You're someone who's easily deceived therefore it's inevitable that you couldn't see the truth behind those lies.'

Arthur flinched when Antonio labeled him as someone who was easily fooled. But it was true nevertheless that he was easily lured by those sham sweet words even though he would never admit it. 'You don't have any proof.'

'You want proof? I'll show you one.'

Antonio started the engine once again and headed somewhere else. He took a few turns down the block before ending their ride by stopping in front of an unfamiliar building Arthur couldn't recognize. He had never been here before.

'So, what's with the place?'

'You'll wait and see.'

Arthur just stared at the building's entrance trying to figure what Antonio had meant when he said that. The Briton didn't know that what he was about to witness was something that will change the plot of his love story forever.

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**A/N:** What a terrible way to end a chapter. I couldn't find any better way to finish it. *sobs miserably* Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter for the least! I kind of felt it was rushed but things will get better and a bit slower from here on. Also, forgive me for any grammar errors! I wouldn't mind if you guys point out my mistakes by the way. It would be a big help! Don't forget to leave some reviews so I know I can still keep writing the story. Thanks and see you on next chapter :)


	2. Revelation

**A/N: **Okay, I was too exited about this chapter so I had this huge urge to post it today. Yeah, I know it's too fast and all but Chapter 3 won't be as fast as this one since I haven't type it down. I only wrote it in my special book. Also, I am so happy that I got myself a quite of subscriptions for this story right after I posted chapter 1 and it made me experience ecstasy! LOL! Thank you, lovable readers! I am really elated. Also, I won't say it anymore but I'm sorry for any grammar errors in this and the following chapters. You could point my mistakes if you want to! Anyway, enjoy reading!

**Disclaimer: **I am too sleepy to think of anything perverted and funny.

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**Triple Play**

_2__nd__ Play; Revelation_

Arthur couldn't apprehend what hidden message Antonio was trying to deliver to him by bringing him to a foreign concrete standing in front of their car. The Spaniard had told him to wait patiently because this was going to be the minute where the Briton would finally grasp the truth and cut the word _perfect_ from the list of _Alfred's charming characteristic_. In fact, Antonio would have like it better if Arthur just simply eliminated the American out of his mind eternally.

'What am I suppose to be catching here…?'Arthur asked indifferently while still casting glances at the building's main door. He was expecting someone to march out from the entrance but even after 10 minutes had passed, nothing interesting happened. Arthur then turned to eye at the male seated at the driver's seat. Shockingly, the Spaniard was passive and unspoken throughout the whole waiting operation. His luscious jade eyes were only directed towards the structure that was rooted to the ground ahead of them. What made the already uptight situation more overwrought was the facial expression Antonio had shown. It was an odd thing to actually witness the serious side of the Briton's best friend. Not to emphasize it or anything, Arthur deemed it to be rather frighteningly intimidating.

Promptly, the front door of the architecture flew wide open with two silhouettes can be seen striding out of the suspicious building. Arthur began to fidget in his seat due to the intense pressure he was currently experiencing. He can't contemplate why did he thought that one of the silhouettes was going to be his boyfriend with his right arm situated on the other's shoulder. Of course he loved Alfred and all but Antonio's words wasn't something he could boldly ditch as if it didn't hold any hidden meaning. Arthur baffled whether he actually distrusted the love of his life from the beginning or not. It didn't matter to him anymore. The moment of Antonio's so called truth was going to unravel right in front of him any soon now.

'Look at it, Arthur. Now it's up to you to judge it or not.' The other coldly remarked without even bothered to look at Arthur's dismayed face.

_No way._ Arthur's mind muttered in astonishment when all the warnings Antonio had spitted on his face countless of times were actually the solid firm truth. The blonde restrained himself from crying but couldn't help but to allow a few tears to trail down to stain his pale cheeks. He didn't expect it to leave such a blow into his delicate heart. He believed he could support himself when cases like this decided to stumble upon his life's pathway but it seemed that he was pretty feeble than he'd actually imagined. Arthur then bit his lip in rage as he could feel the fume of his anger just multiplied rapidly within him. Antonio could only mute himself as his friend tried to clutch his composure steadily while conceiving the images he was getting from his viewpoint. He was having a hard time controlling his immense urge to sprint out of the damn car and do some tongue lashing out there.

'I wasn't anticipating this at all…' Arthur finally found a way to form words in his mouth amidst those anger and despondency that was slowly blinding his rationality. His eyes traced Alfred who was currently wrapping his hand around his partner's waist. Arthur examined the other male beside his _boyfriend _carefully so he could identify the better traits the other might have that succeeded to bait Alfred's attention. From what Arthur could observe, the male was definitely taller than Arthur even it was only over a few inches. Let's not forget the focal point that the male was an albino. A _freaking _albino. His hair looked like those melancholic color of snowflakes and to act as a contra, his eyes were dyed in the color of enigmatic scarlet. In this world, an albino was considered as a rare species or some sort therefore to actually encounter with one was a one in a life time occurrence. Although Arthur won't say it out loud, the albino was rather…_handsome _and eye-catching especially with his dark menacing red eyes which triggered Arthur's heart. The blonde mentally slapped himself for being turned on by the guy who-managed-to-claim-his-_boyfriend-_away's attractive features.

'How did you know he went here?' Arthur's curiosity was swimming in his sentence.

'I kind of…_stalked _you after you went out this morning.' The brunette chafed the back of his head for feeling being caught in doing something that was considered as a crime.

'That doesn't answer my question.'

'Well, I waited for your date to end and then I saw your _boyfriend _stormed out of the café with a furious look on his face and headed to his car.' The Spaniard recalled what had happened slowly. 'I merely eyed him until he took a turn to the right and from there I could have guessed where he was heading.'

'Meaning, you knew he was going here?' Arthur blinked in surprise. How come his best friend knew about things which were out of Arthur's hand!?

'I'd seen him going into the building a couple of times already whenever I passed by around here so I only guessed he would head here after his date with you. Just like what you're seeing now, he would step out from there with that white haired dude. I think there's a club or something inside?' Antonio paused to take a breath before continuing. 'Then I knew from there he was cheating on you. I mean, someone else's boyfriend wasn't supposed to caress and peck at some other dude's cheek!' The brunette almost shouted when he finished his sentence in disbelief.

'Why didn't you tell me?'

'I tried. But your stubborn side just had to kick in.'

The Briton looked down apologetically. 'Sorry.'

Arthur still couldn't process what was happening into his brain's system. He was still appalled and kept on denying the fact he was in reality right at the moment. Their relationship started off wonderfully to end it this way. Or so Arthur had thought. From within the car, Arthur could only gaze as his love held hands with the albino and carved an elated face like some kind of a high school girl who was in love. Arthur won't confess it but it hurts so much just to sit back and allow the act to play in his view. Antonio sent a few glances at his friend which was awfully quiet right now. He knew Arthur had a lot of things squirming in his mind that needed to be answered as fast as possible. Then they watched as the giddy _couple _strolled down the pavement, proceeding to a famous restaurant situated nearby. Arthur couldn't believe Alfred was going to eat again right after he just had his meal with the blonde. No wonder he looked like he was gaining weight these days.

'You're not going to do anything?' Antonio calmly questioned.

'What's the point? I somehow bloody deserved this for rejecting his proposal.' Arthur's face fell into despair.

'Do you still think this is your fault!? You know that proposal wasn't sincere!' Antonio literally flailed his arms around in that cramped space. 'It's a good thing you turned it down because if you didn't, finding out the truth is going to hurt you so much more.'

'So I should stop going out with him?' That came out rather as a dull mumble rather than a significant ask from Arthur's lips.

'You know best, Artie. You know what's good for you and what's not now.'

Honestly, Arthur didn't exactly know what action he should take about this. He felt like he should just stand at the back of the stage as his _boyfriend _perform a romantic scenario with a different person while his other persona was practically yelling at him to ruin the whole story and claim back his dignity. His self slightly agreed with the latter and he should just go to Alfred and demand some sensible explanation. Yeah, maybe he should do that and tell the American how he felt like to be deceived by his persuading words all this time.

'Wait here.'

Arthur told Antonio to remain in the car as he stepped out and headed to the love birds location. Antonio was taken aback for a while at his friend's sudden courageous act to defend his pride but smiled it off. With rage misting his ability to forgive Alfred, Arthur stormed off and interrupted the couple's frivolous time. Arthur wasn't going to back down and he needed to hear a rational reason why Alfred fooled him during these past months.

Alfred gaped when he saw the male that turned down his proposal not long ago was standing in front him with his thin hands on his hips, ferocity written all over his attractive face. The American knew his was caught red handed this time and couldn't seem to find an exit from this somewhat petrifying situation. He instantly released the albino's hand and shoved his in his pocket while putting a calm façade.

'Oh…! Hi, Arthur! Wh-what are you d-doing here?' Alfred let out a failed chuckle.

'Care to explain?' the Briton gestured his hand towards the third party. The albino's appearance dived into the sea of irritation at Arthur's rude action.

'Err…oh! Th-this is a friend of mine!' Arthur rolled his eyes at the American's horrible effort to layer the truth. 'His name is-'

'And who are you?'

The other male sternly asked Arthur with his crimson orbs burning with annoyance and dissatisfaction at how discourteous he was being treated just now. Arthur sensed his glare was sharp and if possible, it might have already penetrated through Arthur's flesh. Arthur still kept his stoic poise and decided to ignore such alarming stare.

'Oh? He didn't tell you? I am by happened to be his bloody boyfriend!' Arthur howled it aloud the point the whole city might have heard it. Even the pedestrians began to halt in their steps and watched the quarreling people play out their roles. When anger took over you, humiliation and publicity became a small detail in life now. 'You sure got the guts to go out with someone else's boyfriend.'

Much to Arthur's surprise, the albino's eyes went dilated and quickly shot a stunned look at Alfred who was now massaging his temples. 'What's the meaning of this!? I thought I was your boyfriend!?' The albino bawled in perplexity. He had grabbed Alfred by the collar and his expression shifted into a more vicious look. 'Are you cheating on me!?'

'Wait, I can explain Gil.' Alfred tried to calm the hot-blooded albino down but he knew better that once the albino had gotten angry, there was no 'stopping him' option available anymore. 'This is all just a misunderstanding! Arthur is a mere friend. I don't know why he is claiming himself to be my boyfriend when he doesn't even have the qualifications.'

Now it was Arthur's turn to go rampage. _How could he say that!? What a heartless ungrateful bastard! _Without hesitation, Arthur pushed the angered albino out of his way so he was directly facing Alfred. The Briton's face was red in exasperation and his exquisite eyes were brimming with tears of regret for even dating a bastard like him in the first place. In a split second, Arthur flung his infamous bitch slap across the American's face. He felt a bit satisfied for doing that but it still haven't subside the fury burning up inside of him. The albino simply watched the entire scene in a bemused manner.

'You…! You incompetent bastard! How dare you say that to me!' Arthur shrieked at the top of his lungs. 'For all the things I'd done for you, this is how you show your thanks!? I can't even believe you could still propose me despite the fact you're cheating on me! What were you thinking!?' The blonde clenched his fist in temper and was already at his peak to punch the lights out of the American before he was broke off by the albino.

'You proposed him!?' It was his turn to wail with all his might now. 'Then what is this!?'

He pulled out his hand to show the finger wrapped with the diamond ring that Alfred had tried to insert Arthur's finger in. This only added the fuel into the fire. After Arthur turned him down, he could still propose someone else just like that!? So the albino was his backup plan all along in case Arthur rejected him!? It must have scarred the other guy's heart more than Arthur's after realizing he was just a substitute all along. Frankly, Arthur pitied the albino more than he'd sympathized himself because nothing hurts more than finding out you're just a plan B towards the guy you devoted your life for.

'Whoa, Alfred. Some courage you got there. I never knew you had someone else in mind right after I rejected you.' Arthur crossed his arms in an amused state. It was an implausible for a gentleman like him to be hoaxed by a despicable fool like him. He should have listen to Antonio's advice earlier if he didn't want to face distressing events like this. It was just a waste of his valuable time.

'Seriously? You straight away went to me right after this guy rejected you?' Arthur could see the grief reflected in the albino's cherry eyes. _It must have been much worst being in his shoes. _'In other meaning, I'm just a replacement? A fucking plan B? Wow. This is not awesome.' Abruptly, he seized the ring from his finger and threw it on the cold ground. 'You know, you can have it back. Let's just pretend the proposal never happened.'

Alfred was speechless at how everything turned out at the end. He feebly picked up the ring and forced it into his pocket. The stinging pain from the slap he'd received was still lingering in currently swollen cheeks. Ashamed with the whole situation, he left the scene with the humiliation of getting declined twice in public haunting the back of his mind.

Arthur and the other only stared as Alfred disappeared from their sight. Then Arthur realized he still hasn't got his desired explanation. What he did just now was just releasing his anger. Well, at least it made him feel better somehow. However, he was still pondering why did the American decided to change ways? Was it because something Arthur had done and he didn't notice it? Or was it just because he simply wasn't good enough for his ex-boyfriend? Arthur allowed a sigh escaped his lips and was relieved he was finally freed from the American's chains of lies for the least. He then looked at the albino who was standing beside him, the feeling of being betrayed by the love of his life visible all over his face.

'I'm sorry you had to go through that.' Arthur tried to comfort him even though his heart itself was seeking for comfort at the same time. He thought of crying and complaining to his heart's content at Antonio later back home. 'I didn't know he was cheating on you too. I assumed you knew he had a boyfriend already.'

'What a bastard. What's the point of telling me I was his only one and all if you're cheating behind my back all this time?' The albino clicked his tongue in irritation at how not awesome it was for him to be engulfed in a bogus bliss the American was giving. 'If I ever see him again, I'll give him a piece of my mind.'

Arthur stared at him as the guy scratched the back of his head, which was now uncertain what to do next since he was drenched in the stench of miserable and despondency. Arthur couldn't help but to approve the fact how _gorgeous _the albino was up close. The image of his striking features was slowly taking over most of Arthur's mind capacity. He even noticed his heart had skipped a beat when he further observed the captivating regions the albino possessed. _No wonder Alfred had the thought of cheating on me over this guy. _

'You're alright?' The other asked with one of his eyebrow arched when he could feel Arthur's gaze was on him.

'Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm fine.' Arthur straightened himself before placing his gaze somewhere else. He didn't realize his face was already covered with a shade of pink. 'Anyway,' the Briton cleared his throat. 'You shouldn't bother about him anymore. I also have no business with him any longer. He is just not worth of our time.'

'I know that.'

'Well…' Arthur didn't know why was he desperate to make the conversation go on. 'Need a ride home?' Again, he mentally slapped himself for being so bold at certain times. _Smooth one, Arthur boy. _

Out of the blue, the albino burst into laughter. An _annoying _laughter to be exact. 'Bold much? Gott, you're interesting.' He didn't bother to cease his laughter as Arthur narrowed his emerald eyes in displease. 'Thanks for the offer but my place is just around here. I can walk back home myself.'

'Oh. Good then. Well, I'll be going-'

'Wait. What's your name?' Arthur startled a little when the albino halted him from heading back to the car by snatching his wrist. 'I'm Gilbert. Gilbert Beilshmidt.'

'Arthur Kirkland.' The Briton had strained himself from blushing went Gilbert displayed one those lady killer smile that Alfred used to give. 'Nice to meet you.' Gilbert took Arthur's held out hand and shook it.

'I got this feeling where I should be mad at you or something for being Alfred's other lover but my awesome self doesn't think you're a bad guy.' Gilbert stated coolly while giving a winner's grin to the blonde.

'Please, I'm the one who should be mad at you.' Arthur smiled back. 'But hey, past will always remain as past. Now we don't have any relation with that bloody wanker.'

'The awesome me approves your statement!' Gilbert gave a thumb up and another lethal smirk that could cost Arthur's life. _What's with this bloody albino and his seductive smiles!?_

'I guess I see you around then?' Secretly, Arthur wished he could meet up with the albino again in the future. He seemed like someone he might get along with. Besides, they had something in common. Being betrayed by the love their life and coincidentally, it by happened to be by the same guy. Well actually, Arthur was just interested in Gilbert but knowing Arthur, he would never admit it in million years.

'Guess so.' Gilbert shrugged. 'You can spot me strolling around here almost every day. Especially in the evening. In case if you want to meet me or anything.'

'I'll keep that in mind.'

Gilbert gave a light wave before parting his way. Arthur stood still for a while as he admires the rear view of the albino. _Even his back is well build and appealing. _Arthur shook his head hoping those impossible thoughts he had about the male flew out of his mind. He'd just been through one of the most heartbreaking moment in his life and he was already showing fascination over someone. To make it worst, the new guy that tempted his attention now was someone his ex-boyfriend had cheated him over. But he had to admit it, in the terms of looks, Arthur found the albino had won over him big time. Arthur sighed at his misfortune and walked off to the Volkswagen which was still in place.

'Whoa, Artie. Couldn't believe you bitch-slapped Alfred. _Asombroso.' _Antonio smirked at Arthur who was already in the car, fastening his seat belt.

'I didn't expect him to cheat me over an albino.'

'I told you your heart can't take the impact.'

'I can't complain thought. He is really handsome.'

There was a moment of pause right after Arthur had said '_handsome'_. Antonio was trying to process the compliment his friend had give towards the guy who he supposed to hate somehow. '¡Dios mío! You never compliment someone besides your used to be oh-so-perfect Alfred.'

Arthur didn't know for how many times he had rolled his eyes for the day. He can't really understand how Antonio's head worked sometimes. 'What's wrong with me complimenting someone?'

'I think you're ready to take another chance to love again even though I feel like it's too fast.' The brunette started the engine and steered the car carefully while at the same time trying to keep up with the conversation. 'You know the name of the dude?'

'Gilbert Beilschmidt. I guess he's German.'

'Then this Gilbert must be really quite the charm if he managed to steal your heart in a _very _short period of time.'

'I don't have feelings for him, Antonio.' Arthur corrected the Spaniard's statement. 'Get your facts right.'

'Oh, you might say that now but eventually you'll realize it yourself.'

'I know when I like someone or not, you git.'

'Yes, yes, your majesty.'

Their journey back home was rather quiet than usual. Arthur had lost his mood to speak anything due to all the things that currently inhabited his mind especially the part about Alfred cheating on him. Antonio understood the situation and decided not to disturb Arthur during their time in the car. The road was crowded with vehicles so they frequently would end up in a traffic jam. Suddenly, Arthur snapped back to reality from his long thinking about past things.

'Will I ever fall in love again without getting betrayed?'

'What's with the sudden? Of course you're able to love again.' Antonio immediately answered. 'Everyone gets a second chance in love.'

'I thought my relationship with Alfred was wonderful.' Arthur sounded melancholic when he'd said that.

'Not everything seemed like you ought it to be.'

'I was a fool. A big one too. A big fucking fool.'

'Don't say that, Artie. Alfred is the fool here for not appreciating what he has.' Antonio tried to soothe Arthur's broken heart. 'You're a good partner in terms of friendship and love. It's their loss to have someone incredible as you to walk away just like that.'

Arthur was touched at his friend's words. He felt very treasured and loved more than he usually gets. At the end, Antonio was the only one Arthur could depend on and act his real self without pulling anything back. The Spaniard really deserved the Briton's upmost attention for always being there for him and accepting every flaw he had. Sometimes, Arthur would really question himself why didn't he fall for Antonio out of all people? He has everything a person sought in a lover except the fact that he could be oblivious and insensitive to a degree but other than that, he was exceptionally perfect.

'Hey, Arthur?' Antonio interrupted Arthur's idle thoughts.

'What?' The blonde snapped out of his daydream and glanced at Antonio whose gaze was still on the road yet a serious and concern look could be seen clearly on his eye-candy face. 'Something matter?'

'I'm going to be blunt and say this so don't freak out.' Antonio gave the Briton a forewarning.

'You're always blunt and bold. Just say it.'

'Okay then.' The brunette took a deep breath before proceeding to finish his sentence. 'Would you like to be my boyfriend?' Straightforwardly, Antonio shoved the surprising proposal into Arthur's face.

'Um, pardon? I don't quite get you?' Arthur tried to reconfirm that his ears wasn't playing tricks on him.

'Would you like to start a romantic relationship with me, _Arthur Kirkland?' _

From shocked, Arthur's face went deep red when his best friend just somehow confessed to him. This was also one of the things that Arthur least expected to happen today. With all the things happening, he couldn't believe his hearing that Antonio just asked him to be his lover. It was true when they say that a heart hurt by love can only be cured by love alone but Arthur was most definitely not ready to start a relationship with someone just after he broke up with his _boyfriend_. Especially if the person was someone he'd labeled as his best friend for almost 3 years. Great, this trip back home was undeniably going to a _very awkward._

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**A/N:** OMG! I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE CHAPTER BECAUSE I REALLY HAD FUN WRITING THIS DOWN. And Prussia-sama has finally made his debut! YAY FOR GILBERT and I swore being him in this story is just so frustrating. Finding out you're a plan B and all is just too much to be taken. But then again, I made him that way so that makes me an asshole._ I'm just saying_. Anyway, see you in the next chapter that will come out a bit late. Remember, patience is a virtue. Reviews please! It's my oxygen! Thanks~


	3. Recollection

**A/N: **Holy shit. I swear to God I didn't expect it to be _this_ long. I was having too much fun writing down the reminiscing part to the point I forgot to keep track of the words. Hope you guys won't get angry at me! *hides* Anyway, here's the 3rd chapter. Hope you'll enjoy because for sure as hell I did. HAHA.

**Warnings: **A lot of SpainxEngland fluffs. Really. Lol. This chapter is basically SpUk-centric.

**Disclaimer: **WHY WON'T MY MOM BRING ME TO ITALY!? Omg, you don't wanna know how badly I want to go to Venice and Florence. If only I own Hetalia.../cries miserably/

* * *

**Triple Play**

_3__rd__ Play; Recollection_

'Oi, Artie! What do you want for dinner?' The Spaniard called out from the kitchen.

'Anything is fine.' Arthur replied after a long thought of what he felt like eating for the day but he wasn't really in the mood so he decided any meal could do. After all, whatever dishes that Antonio makes are bound to be extremely scrumptious and well-made.

'Is Lasagna fine?' The brunette suggested as he peeked at the Briton who was currently hugging his knees tightly on the red sofa.

'Sure.' The blonde muffled under his breath as he seized a cushion to burrow his head into. He really didn't feel like talking to his housemate at the moment.

After the whole confession event that had happened not so long ago, Arthur couldn't chat properly with his best friend without allowing red tints to rest on his cheeks or let alone staring at him directly into such mesmerizing eyes. Hell, just by hearing the Spaniard's seductive and alluring voice was enough to throw him off the edge. It was a futile attempt for the Briton to resist his mind from producing ludicrous fantasies such as kissing the brunette passionately right there and- No! Arthur shouldn't think about absurd matters like this! He didn't hold such affections for the other therefore anticipations like those are actually not supposed to linger in his head. Nevertheless, he did somewhat _rejected _Antonio's humble proposal and the guilt from it was taunting him relentlessly and not to mention the Spaniard's constant cheery attitude wasn't making it any better.

Arthur buried his head deeper into the soft cushion concealing the crimson shades that began to appear on his feature. He felt he was being too harsh towards the other because all he did was asking a permission to start a relationship with him and since he was Arthur, without even trying to consider about it thoroughly he gave a bold "No" as his answer to the proposal. It wasn't completely his fault! He really didn't know how to take the situation and panic managed to find a spot in his system so the only answer he could come up with at that moment was "no". Even though the Spaniard received the reply rather calmly and laughed it off by saying he knew the rejection was coming, Arthur could see Antonio was failing horribly on hiding the fact how frustrated he was with the outcome. From that moment, their trip back home felt inevitably discomfited even though the Spaniard tried to start a conversation or two at certain time intervals so he could lighten up the mood. Sadly, the conclusion of the attempt was either a complete silence from Arthur or Antonio replying his own reluctant questions. You see, Arthur really liked the brunette but it was nothing more than just an average love you hold for a best friend. It was still a shocking matter for the Briton that Antonio actually conveyed deep feelings for him all these times and he knew the rejection must had blew him off _hard. _Arthur was helpless and couldn't do anything to console his buddy's heart because after all, he was the reason behind those scars. _I shouldn't have refused him like that…_

'Hey, Arthur? Are you okay there?' The abrupt concern startled the Briton from his temporary deep thoughts.

'Yes, I'm fine. Thanks.' Arthur knew who was behind the fascinating voice so he decided to bury his head further into the cushion to the point it might have blend in with the fabric. 'What do you want?' the question came out as a stifle rather being audible to the other's hearing.

'What? Could you speak a little louder?'

'Never mind!' Arthur jerked his head back up and glared sternly at his housemate into the eyes. Less than 5 seconds, Arthur couldn't restrain his red flush anymore and quickly pulled his gaze away from Antonio. The brunette merely chuckled at the act and found it to be entertainingly adorable. He then proceeded to ruffle the blonde's silky hair as he landed his bottom on the sofa beside the Briton. 'You are really cute, you know.' A warm smile was visible on the other's face.

'Shut up, idiot.' The blonde scowled while embracing the cushion tightly than before.

'Cute. _Extremely cute_.'

'Shush!' This time, the scarlet tint was victorious on covering the Arthur's face and Arthur knew it was futile to conceal its presence any longer. 'Anyway, what do you want?'

'Came to tell you that dinner's ready.'

'That was fast.'

'Of course. I am the cook after all.' The brunette smirked at his own amazing skill. 'It wasn't as quick as you think actually. You were just brooding over for a quite long time. What were you thinking anyway?' Arthur noticed the other began to scoot closer to him now.

'Things which aren't your concern.' He swore he felt his heart skipped a beat a second ago and his stomach magically did some kind of an acrobat performance for no one to be precise. Much to his annoyance, his head at the same time just won't cease on alerting him that he could feel Antonio's warmth.

'Is it Alfred?' Antonio's voice sounded ominous when he muttered the American's name that it sent shivers down Arthur's spine.

'Nope, I decided not to cling onto the past anymore. He is just not that worth it.'

'Good to hear that. For a second there I thought you still haven't let him go.'

'Who do you take me for?' Arthur raised an eyebrow. 'Please, ex-lovers are not my standard.'

Antonio laughed at the statement and Arthur couldn't help but to laugh along. He basically enjoyed seeing the brunette laughs to his heart content because for some apparent reason, it made the Briton to feel glad inside. Then his guilt believed it was a perfect time to come stumbling down into his mind and instantly, Arthur stopped laughing and replaced it with devastating frown. Even though Antonio was an oblivious person, he was somewhat fast on grasping the fact that Arthur's mood had fell awfully at the current moment and halted his laughter.

'Antonio, I'm sorry. Really, really sorry.' Arthur apologized after a long tensed silence. 'I know I was terribly harsh towards you inside the car and I think you don't deserve such treatment so-'

'Arthur, shh.' The Spaniard placed his forefinger on the blonde's dry lips once he understood the situation. 'It isn't your fault. I'm the idiot here for confessing to you just right after you got broke up.' He gave a reassuring smile. 'It's typical for you to directly say no. Bad move, huh?'

'…Still! I should have thought about it thoroughly but panic chose to appear out of nowhere inside of me and then rudely I had…' Arthur couldn't end his sentence. His remorse was getting the better of him. No matter how many times Antonio chose to tell him that it wasn't his fault and remained to act gentle towards him, it won't help him do any better. What made Arthur to feel so dreadful as if he just committed a crime was the discernible disappointment reflected on the Spaniard's delicate eyes that he just couldn't simply overlook. It was true that Antonio put all of his effort on layering it with his usual giddy attitude but it still wasn't excellent enough to deceive Arthur's perception. The blonde wondered for a while whether which condition was much more upsetting. Witnessing the love of your life dating and gleefully praising someone else while wishing for their happiness or getting rejected rudely right after confessing your feelings with an open sincere heart? Arthur presumed both of it was equally agonizing and sadly he by happened to be the cause of it.

'It's fine. Really. So don't think about it too much.' Antonio placed both of his hands at the side of the currently grimacing Briton's face so he could get a better view of the one he loves. 'Don't put the blame on yourself. If someone needs to be at fault here, it's me.' Once again, he gave a comforting smile.

Arthur's heart started to ache and his presently miserable mind kept on informing himself that he wasn't worthy enough to be loved by someone so compassionate and loving like Antonio. In fact, he didn't really deserve to be loved by anyone at all because if it was wrong, why did Alfred cheat on him in the first place? The American might have thought Arthur was too undeserving for his love therefore he decided to hook up with another person instead. Displeasing 'maybe's and 'what if's began to conquered his mind to the extend he predicted himself to be left alone at the end. This was why Arthur hated if something made him feel guilty. He wouldn't understand when to stop torturing his own mind with things that was a simple matter at first but then became a complicated dilemma.

'Well, I'll go eat first. It will get cold soon. Cheer up, okay Artie?' The brunette stood up to make his leave from the living room until Arthur tugged him by the sleeve. Antonio turned around to look at his love with a puzzling expression.

'…Just give me some time, okay? I'll think about your proposal and I'm still sorry.' Arthur was working hard on controlling his blush from appearing for the umpteenth time again that day while keeping up with his supposed to be composed sentence.

Antonio could detect a spark lighted up in his passionate heart. Immediately, he displayed a goofy grin that resembled a child getting a lot of candies from his parents. Arthur was aware that his friend was pleased to hear his respond as if he just got accepted while in reality Arthur still haven't agree on being in a relationship with the other _yet_. Well, at least he looked better than before and that was sufficient to make Arthur smiled along.

'You have all the time in world, Artie.' Antonio suggestively winked at Arthur who was now at the peak of turning his face entirely into a tomato before sauntering back to the dining table.

'Th-thanks.'

After the Spaniard had left the room, Arthur took this advantage to think about a few things. It was true that he'll consider about his best friend's proposal since Arthur trusted the fact he would practically be the luckiest and happiest person alive to have someone like Antonio taking care of him with so much tender and affections. But what made Arthur from stopping himself to accept it was the harsh truth of him not having mutual feelings. It was undeniable that he labored a lot of love for the other but that feeling shouldn't be mistaken with the kind of love you harbor for your lovers, crushes and admires. Arthur labeled this love as a family or friendly type of love. Maybe he did thought of _kissing_ the Spaniard from time to time but that wasn't the point here. Those thoughts randomly appeared just only because he was only curious on what kind of taste does the other holds. Well, families do kiss each other on the lips too, right? What was it called? Ah, yes. _Family kiss. _Arthur assumed he was merely longed for his mother's tender kiss at the cheeks so it was normal for him to have the desire of pecking the male whom he regarded as a family.

The further Arthur's thoughts were, the easier was it for him to be drifted away into his memories about how he and Antonio had met for the first time. As certain times, he found himself to be chuckling like a kid when he remembered that his first impression on Antonio was 'annoying bastard'. The blonde didn't realize a smile was making its way on his face as he continued to reminisce the past he would never forget.

**_-3 years ago-_**

'Bloody hell! Why did they have to put the goddamn book so high?' Arthur was already standing on his toes trying to grab his desired book which was much to Arthur's displease, situated higher than his height could reach. After a few failed shots, he let out a sigh that could be heard all over the continent and threw some curses at his misfortune. The problem with Arthur was that he cared about the state of his pride more than his ability to get something he wanted because all he needed to do was ask one of the librarians to help him and they will do their job. Sadly, Arthur found it to be much of a hassle and it will somehow damage his pride so he chose to continue trying to reach book even though he knew it was ineffective since the start.

'ARGH!' The Briton wailed in devastation. 'Who needs the book anyway? I'm not that desperate.' He glared sharply at the cooking book which was written by one of the famous chefs in the world and folded his arms in irritation.

As he proceeded to glare sternly at the inanimate object, it slowly changed into more of a pleading look. 'For heaven's sake, why can't I bloody reach you? Don't you get it how badly I need you right now?' Arthur realized he was seriously desperate to get his hands on the cooking book where he believed could improve his cooking skill in a short period of time since he was starting to have a one-sided argument with a non-living entity. He was definitely on the verge of losing his sanity.

'Here, let me get it for you, amigo.' An unrecognizable voice could be heard as a figure appeared from behind Arthur and astonishingly–to Arthur at least-managed to snatch the book and handed it over to the blonde.

'Th-thanks.' Arthur didn't really know what to say after seeing someone he'd presumed was Spanish due to the accent in his sentence just now had helped him to get the book. The foreigner was a tall man who has a slim-yet-not-too-slim physique with an attractive tan skin and a pair of stunning olive eyes. His dark brown hair was somewhat messy and ruffled but was still tidy enough not to be mistaken as a bed hair. The Spaniard gave him a friendly smile while Arthur was only capable of averting his gaze away since he was feeling rather nervous.

'No problem.' The taller male was about to make his leave from the aisle before he turned his heels around and reminded Arthur that he could always get a librarian or the closet person to help him if he couldn't reach a book. Arthur's eyes twitched in annoyance as he simply stared at the foreigner who was slowly disappearing from his view. _The nerve of him! Is he saying I am short!?_

Ignoring the event that had happened a couple of minutes ago, Arthur headed to the counter with the initiation to borrow the book. Much to his exasperation, the queue was frustratingly long due to having one counter open only for the day. As he lined up, he started to hear someone humming a song not too loud behind him. Even though it was bothering Arthur and not to mention the tune was out of place, he decided to give it a miss since after all, there were all kinds of people in this world; from the civilized one like him to the plainly annoying one like the person behind him.

It was finally his turn for the librarian to confirm his borrow over the book and right after his turn was done, the previous humming person stopped his music and thought it was a good decision to almost shout in a bloody library.

'Hey, aren't you the one that couldn't reach the book?' _Bloody hell, it's him._

'_Do you have to!?' _Arthur hissed under his breath hoping it wasn't too loud since everyone seemed to turn their eyes towards them. He then mentally thanked the librarian behind the counter who had strictly asked the Spaniard to quiet down. The brunette replied a soft 'sorry' before averting his gaze back and grinned at Arthur who had now figured out today was probably the worst day he'd ever been through. _Heaven's sake, this guy is annoying!_

Arthur didn't know how it turned out to be like this. He was supposed to be alone an hour ago and he still couldn't contemplate on why was there a foreigner from Spain walking beside him with a book he'd borrowed not so long ago and a packet filled with croquettes in his hand at the moment. Right after the whole commotion in the national library, Arthur quickly exited the building with the wish of not encountering with the other male for the third time that day. When he thought he had finally escaped from the Spaniard's sight, a familiar voice hollered him with the call of "_that guy who couldn't reach the book_" from behind and Arthur knew from there everything was going to be dumped into the hole of disaster.

'Why are you pestering me?' Arthur glowered at the male who was currently getting a bite of the still hot croquette. He wasn't going to ask where did he bought the food even though the smell of it was tempting him to get one himself but since he was Arthur, he rather swim an ocean filled with piranhas rather than asking the question.

'I'm not pestering you.' The other replied expressionlessly.

'Then why are you following me!?'

'You looked like someone who needs help later in future. I'm here as a standby in case anything happens.' The brunette smiled happily for some reason. 'I'm currently free anyway so it doesn't hurt to be a good use for someone.'

'I don't _need _anyone's help. Now, freaking get lost!' The Briton sped his walking pace but only having his action to be followed by the Spaniard. The faster he got, the same goes to the other. Realizing this irritating imitation, Arthur's frown became worse as minutes went by. _He is really testing my patient…!_

'Look.' The shorter male halted in his step and spun around to face the foreigner who looked like he was enjoying the whole situation. _Annoying bastard. _'What do you bloody want from me!? Money!? If so, here! Take it!' Arthur rummaged his pants' pocket for his wallet and took out a few notes after finding it. _This will definitely make him go away!_

As Arthur was about to shove the cash notes into the confused Spaniard's hands, he didn't notice there was a speeding motorbike directing towards him. The foreigner was quick to realize a loud engine sound becoming audible as seconds passed by and instinctively pulled Arthur closer to him but wasn't in time to avoid the Briton's precious wallet to be snatched away by the theft. The both of them stood there speechless before registering what had just happened.

'Shit! My wallet! MY BLOODY WALLET!' Arthur fisted his hair in fright as it slowly consumed his rationality at the moment. 'Oh God, this isn't happening! My credit cards! My ID! SHIT! MY HIGH SCHOOL PHOTO! NO! NO ONE IS ALLOWED TO SEE THAT!'

The Spaniard reacted to the occasion swiftly and searched for something he could ride to catch up with the theft. Luck was on his side, he thought, after spotting a guy who was parking his motorbike near a close by café. Without wasting any more time, he shoved his things at Arthur and ran towards the guy with the instigation to ride the rather old looking transport.

'Please lend me this bike for a while. I have no time to explain.' The words came out hastily that the clueless guy mistook it as a gibberish language. The brunette understood the guy was still surprised with the sudden approach from a stranger and simply said, 'Just give me the damn key. Don't worry, I promise I'll return it, amigo. I just need to catch a theft.'

Without showing any signs of protest, the confused owner handed his motorbike's key over to the Spaniard. As he started the engine and was satisfied that despite the bike seemed old it was still in a good condition, he assured Arthur that he was going to get back his wallet. Arthur who was now almost on the verge of tears gave a begging nod and the other male took it as an approval for him to begin his cat and dog chase.

Luckily, the theft wasn't that far as the brunette expected it to be. He assumed that maybe the theft had guessed no one was tailing him and he decided to take his getaway lightly. The foreigner could only sympathize with the theft's fate because if you have a Spaniard chasing you, never ever slows down your tempo unless you have a death wish.

The Spaniard thanked God that the road wasn't crowded with cars instead it was looking rather peaceful for a holiday. This condition made it easier for the male to accelerate without worrying himself in case he knocks out something and pursued to catch up with the theft's pace. He also realized the theft had began to accelerate too once they had made a turn around the nearest block and this made the brunette to click his tongue in annoyance. Somehow, luck decided to befall on him again as the theft suddenly lost his balance and was at the limit to fall down from his bike. The brunette took this advantage to increase the velocity of his bike until he managed to align with the theft's position. Without further ado, he lifted his right leg to kick the theft's bike resulting it to falter and the rider finally fell off from his bike at the middle of the street. Thankfully, a few incoming cars was able to press their break on time to avoid bumping into the theft who was currently lying down on the street, writhing in pain.

The Spaniard halted his bike and walked off towards the theft's location. His eyes looked infuriating as if he could beat the crap out of anyone stupid enough to provoke him at the moment. The theft began to tremble in horror as he simply eyed the angry Spaniard marched forward and crouched besides him. It just wasn't the dude's lucky day.

'The wallet?' Even though the brunette was smiling, the criminal could tell there was an evil aura emitting around him. The brunette jerked him by the collar roughly despite knowing the guy was in pain from the impact of falling. At first he thought he wanted to punch the lights out of the criminal but his mood wasn't _that _terrible today so he let it slide. Anyway, he wasn't too keen on starting another hassle in the middle of the road.

'H-hhhe-her-h-here, s-sir!' hurriedly, he pulled out the wallet he had stole a while ago from his jacket's pocket. 'Please forgive me!'

'You have to ask that from the police, si?' The Spaniard stuffed the Briton's wallet into his pocket before standing up only to be greeted by a number of people hoarding around the scene. He politely asked one of the civilians to call the police in his place since he by happened not to carry his phone with him. People started to ask him what had happened and he merely answered all of it with a plain 'God called me to chase a sinner.'

After a brief interrogation from the just arrived cops, he was dismissed and headed back to Arthur's location. He let the police section to do the rest of the job because the main reason why he'd even chased the theft was because the criminal had stolen the blonde's wallet. Once he arrived at where the Briton's was currently situated, he returned the bike he'd borrowed to the owner who was miraculously enough still there, having a tea at the café while at it. The brunette apologized for the sudden demand he'd made for the transport but the owner merely shrugged it off and said he was happy that his bike was able to serve justice properly. The Spaniard then went to Arthur who was now burying his face into his hands, seated at one of the café's tables.

'Sorry I was late but I retrieved your wallet.' After hearing the statement, Arthur immediately jerked his head up to look directly into his savior's eyes and without thinking properly, pulled him in a tight embrace. The brunette felt a little uncomfortable about this since the hug was somewhat firm and it literally suffocated him.

'Oh, God! Thank you so much! Thank you! Thank you and thank you!' The blonde finally let go of him and showed one of the rarest yet sincerest smile ever to be shown by the cynical gentleman named Arthur Kirkland. 'I don't know what will happen if you weren't here!'

The brunette couldn't help but to blush a little seeing the shorter male smiling at him with such radiant. He sensed his heart was throbbing rapidly than before and felt a few butterflies flapped its wings in his stomach. He tried to smile back to show that he was happy he could be a help to someone but it ended up with him averting his gaze from the other. _Wow, he's…rather cute._

Arthur then took his wallet back from the foreigner and reminded himself to observe his surrounding frequently before making any move that involves with him taking out his belongings. 'I think my gratitude isn't enough.' Arthur spoke up when he felt that a plain "thank you" wasn't enough if compared to the danger the Spaniard had put himself through just to retrieve his, a complete stranger's, wallet.

'Nah. It's fine. Oh, you're welcome by the way.' The brunette playfully winked at the Briton.

'No. This isn't enough. I need to pay you back somehow.'

'Eh? Really, you don't have to!' The taller male presumed the Briton's was taking this too seriously.

'No. I will do something and I am _going _to do it.' Arthur placed his right hand on his chin and began to indulge himself into his deep thinking of what he should do to express his gratitude. Abruptly, something snapped him back to reality. 'Hey, you're a foreigner right?'

'Yes?' The other male arched an eyebrow in bemusement.

'Don't you have a place to stay?'

'Currently, no. I just got here, you see. My flight arrived this morning so I'm still looking for a place to rest in.'

'…Yet you went to the library first?'

'I was in the mood of reading so I headed to the closest library and borrowed a decent book.' He confirmed himself that his croquettes and book were fine once he saw it on the table that Arthur had seated at just now. 'Don't worry. I'll be finding a hotel or something to stay in for a while before earning myself enough money here to rent an apartment.'

'…Wait. Rent an apartment?'

'Si. I would want to buy a house though but with my financial state right now, a rented apartment would be sufficient.'

'Meaning, you're going to live here…?'

'That's right!' The brunette clapped his hands joyfully after Arthur managed to figure out why he was here at the first place.

'…Then, where's your luggage…?' Arthur found it to be unexceptionally odd that the foreigner didn't carry any kind of bags along with him since their first encounter if it was true he was going to live here. In fact, even if he was merely visiting the city, it was implausible for him to come bare handed.

'…Luggage?' The taller male eyed the blonde confusingly.

'Yes. Luggage…?'

'…Opps.' The Spaniard finally grasped the situation and realized he might have left all of his belongings at a restaurant he had stopped by to eat before proceeding to the library. He had assumed it was there since he remembered himself went to the library with nothing in hand. 'Crap. I think I left it at this one restaurant!'

'What the hell! You bloody left your baggage at a restaurant!? Idiot!' Even though this wasn't Arthur's problem, he couldn't help to feel angry at the other for being clumsy and forgetful. Seriously, who would've forgotten their belonging that could have been the size of a dog at a restaurant in a city you've never been to?

'Shit! God, I hope it's still there!' The Spaniard began to panic and wasn't calm enough to sort out his mind to solve this predicament.

'Just calm down. Now, where's the restaurant? What's it called?' Arthur tried to calm the currently panicking foreigner.

'Err, I don't remember where it is.' The brunette began to rack his brain hard trying to get every piece of information he could obtain from his memories about his luggage location. 'I think the name of the restaurant was something that has to do with flower…? I don't know!'

Arthur paused for a while to think of a restaurant's name in this city that was related to flower. '…Was it _magenta garden?'_

'Nope. Not that one!'

Arthur guessed again. '_Ambrosia's delight?' _

'No.'

'Err, _Recipes behind roses?' _

'Not that one either! God!' The brunette started to flail his arms around.

'…Ah! I know! Was it _florist's flowery foods?' _

'YES! THAT ONE!' The Spaniard was extremely glad that the Briton's guessed the right restaurant and without wasting any more time, they grabbed their things and ran off to the mentioned restaurant which was thankfully were only a few blocks away. _Thank God he got it right or not I will lose my things forever!_

The Spaniard thanked the restaurant's workers for keeping his luggage safe when he was somewhat _away_ from it for a certain period of time. He noted himself to always keep an eye on his things 24/7 especially if he was going to stay in a foreign country. He'd also thanked Arthur for being a help because if it wasn't for him, he couldn't imagine what might have happened to his stuffs right now.

'Thanks, amigo. You helped a lot.' The brunette gave a small smile.

'Hey, you helped me before. I'm just paying the debt.' Even though Arthur had said that, he didn't really feel like had done anything that was worth as a gratitude for the other's bravery. In fact, all he did was just guessing the correct name for the restaurant and that was all. Nothing big. Then suddenly, he thought of something which he considered it to be a brilliant idea.

'Hey, how about you stay at my place?' The invitation came out rather bold than it was supposed to be.

'…What?'

'I'm living alone now and my apartment is kind of big for a single person to live in by himself.' He shrugged. 'Anyway, it would be nice to have a company.'

'Really!? I mean, are you really sure? I might be a burden and-' The brunette didn't get to finish what he was saying since Arthur had cut him off.

'It's fine. Really. I'm absolutely sure. At least this is something I could do to pay you back.'

'Still with this whole paying back thingy?' The Spaniard chortled at how persistent the shorter male was on paying back his debt. It was somehow intriguing and _adorable _at the same time. 'Well, if you insist.'

'Well then, _housemate._' Arthur picked some of the brunette's baggage and stood beside him. 'My apartment is not that far. We could reach there within 10 minutes.' He began to stroll down the pavement, beckoning the other to follow him.

'Okay then, _housemate. _Lead the way.' The brunette followed a second later and caught up with Arthur's fast steps.

On their way to Arthur's place, they had a few conversations to occupy the time. Arthur realized the other was rather talkative and sounded enthusiastic most of the time. Well, he wasn't really mind about it and felt relief he could be somewhat of a help to the other.

'What's your name anyway?' The Briton inquired since he didn't really get the chance to ask his new housemate's name before.

'Antonio.' The Spaniard beamed cheerfully. 'Antonio Fernandez Carriedo. In case if you're wondering about my full name. You?'

'Arthur Kirkland. Nice to meet you, Antonio.' Arthur carved a welcoming smile on his feature.

'Same here.' Antonio felt pleased inside that he wasn't alone on his first day in a foreign place. Frankly, he was scared that he couldn't survive living here and people wouldn't be bothered enough to land him a hand but it seemed like he was wrong. There was always hope somewhere.

'Anyway, what made you to migrate here all the way from Spain?' Arthur questioned him out of curiosity.

'Oh.' Antonio paused for a while to think of an answer. 'Well, you can say that I wanted to start a new life. I was tempted to try living somewhere new by myself. Staying at the same place for too long can get very boring.'

'But Spain is a magnificent place to be right?'

'Of course. It's the country of passion after all.'

'Then?'

'Like I said, I just wanted to try living somewhere new.'

'Why here?'

'I heard good rumors about it so yeah.' The conversation ended just as Antonio had said that.

Arthur chose not to dig into his privacy anymore because he understood that they were things that you didn't want to share it with others. Their journey back to the apartment felt quick because they were busying themselves with idle chat by sharing interests and some sort along the way to the point they didn't realize time had almost missed the location. Secretly, Arthur was the happiest person at the moment because he knew he didn't have to be alone anymore. He was finally going to have someone where he could call as friend. Arthur did have friends back at his hometown but since he started living independently, his social life fell down to zero. He mostly would trapped himself in his home and did nothing but watch TV or slept the entire day so he found it to be nice to have a company in his rather boring life. He had a tingling sense that he was definitely going to enjoy living with Antonio.

**-_Current time-_**

'Hey, Arthur? If you're not planning to eat dinner tonight, say it earlier so I don't have to make two.' Arthur snapped back to reality when he heard Antonio had hollered from the kitchen as he continued to wash his plate.

'No, I'm eating. Sorry.' Arthur propped himself from the sofa and strutted to the dining table to have his meal. _God, it smells delicious! As expected of Antonio._

'What took you so long to come and eat, by the way?' Antonio was wiping his wet hands with a handkerchief before taking a seat on a chair next to Arthur. 'I thought I told you to stop thinking about it?'

'Nothing about that.' Arthur muttered after swallowing a chunk of the food. 'I was reminiscing the past. You know, when we first met.'

Antonio blinked a few times before breaking into a laughter that made Arthur to roll his eyes at such childish act. 'Oh, Artie. How sweet! It has been…3 years, right?'

'Yeah…'

'Would you believe me if I said I had love you since our first encounter?'

Arthur almost spitted out the food he was chewing. 'Re-Really!? Si-since that time you'd helped me in the library?' The blonde's eyes went wide in disbelieve for how long the Spaniard had liked him and the saddest part was that he'd never even realized about it before!

'Well, not actually from the time in the library. I think this feeling sprouted when you gave me that rare smile which resembled the brightness of thousands of stars in the night sky.'

'Wow. That was cheesy.' Arthur commented bluntly.

'Well, it doesn't matter when it began because what matters is I still love you and forever will.' Antonio took Arthur's empty left hand and landed a tender kiss on top of it. This stirred Arthur's reactive system to form deep red flushes on his cheeks and making his temperature rose to the point he'd predicted his head was already boiling.

'I-idiot!' Was the only word Arthur could utter as a respond towards the action. Antonio was just that good on taking him by surprises and making him speechless.

After that, the night went by peacefully and all of the things that happened today wouldn't stop making the blonde embarrassed from time to time. _I should stop thinking about it! _Before Arthur managed to get a good sleep, his mind couldn't stop thinking about the fact that Antonio had liked him for 3 years now and Arthur was too oblivious to notice it. Or was it the Spaniard was just extremely good on concealing it? Anyway, Arthur knew Antonio must have it hard when Arthur was still in a relationship with Alfred and every time he got back from his date, he would tell everything that had happened between him and Alfred to Antonio. From the holding hands part to the kissing part. Yet, he still couldn't see the pain inside his best friend's eyes. Arthur sighed and decided to give himself a rest for the day before drifting off to sleep. _Too much thinking isn't good either._

* * *

**A/N: **I am not writing a chapter this long anymore. (Hope so). Ah, I hope there wasn't that much of a mistake in this extremely long chapter. Also, sorry for the absent of Prussia and America in here! Don't worry, they'll appear in the next chapter. Well, maybe not America but let's see about it. But I assure you our beloved Gilbert is returning soon! HAHA! Anyway, thanks for reading and don't forget to leave some reviews. I need them! :D See you in the next chappie~~

P.S: Check out my new fanfic if you have the time and I would love you forever (Not forcing though :) ) It's called '_Hard to Get!' _Was born from the deepest, most stupid area of my brain. LOL

Summary of it: _Arthur was sick of people pissing him off so he went to buy a potion from Gilbert that would make them follow his orders 24/7. But what happens when Gilbert accidentally gave him the wrong one and it made most of the male nations fighting to earn Arthur's love instead? To make up for the mistake he did, Gilbert now had to work as Arthur's bodyguard and protect him from his 'fans'._


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